London has been battered by 50mph winds that have felled trees and caused travel chaos. Powerful gusts swept across the capital as the Met Office issued a yellow "be aware" weather alert for most of the country.

Families of the Germanwings crash victims may have to wait up to four months for their remains to be identified.

City Spy: Tim Cobbold moves on but keeps Stationery date

Man of note: Cobbold has quit De La Rue for events and website firm UBM

Published: 10 March 2014

Updated: 08:43, 13 March 2014

Much relief at the Stationers’ Company that Tim Cobbold will still deliver tonight’s annual lecture, even after quitting as boss of banknote printer De La Rue.

His address to the Stationers, the City of London livery company for the communications and content industries, is entitled Exporting for Britain: De La Rue’s Experience. Given that Cobbold has just exported himself to website and events firm UBM, even though De La Rue’s flagship contract with the Bank of England is out to tender, he should have lots to say. Under David Levin, UBM was no fan of the printed word, selling off numerous esteemed trade journals.

As far as Cobbold — a veteran of engineer Smiths Group and uninterruptible power systems provider Chloride — is concerned, his career has been far from stationary.

PAM awards are a real hoot, mon...

Lots of jokes about Scottish independence at the PAM Awards for the wealth management industry at the Dorchester, where kilt-wearing Radio 4 comedian Fred MacAulay was master of ceremonies.

When Adam & Co won Best Investment Performance for defensive portfolios, Macaulay joked that the Edinburgh firm is “based in Scotland — for the time being”. That was a not-so-subtle reference to how regulators may force some firms in financial services to move south of the border in the event of a Yes vote.

MacAulay also mocked Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond for over-egging the celebrations when Andy Murray won Wimbledon last year: “Mr Salmond said Scotland is punching above its weight. I thought, ‘Isn’t it typical? Even our successes are seen in terms of violence and obesity.’”

A mix of boutique firms and bulge-bracket banks won the 12 gongs, with Citi Private Bank doing best by picking up two awards. But one of the loudest cheers came from the Coutts’ table after the Royal Bank of Scotland subsidiary got the last award, Total Wealth Solutions Provider for Ultra-High-Net-Worth Clients. Given RBS’s epic losses over the last five years, the well-heeled folk from Coutts must be glad to have something to celebrate.

Arsenal end trophy drought

Arsenal Football Club was the most surprising sponsor at the awards as it backed a gong for investment performance. Arsenal is apparently keen to persuade rich folk to buy season tickets in the Emirates Stadium’s club-level facility. MacAulay couldn’t resist a dig as Arsenal’s representative came on stage, clutching the award that he was about to present. “Who knows how many trophies they might pick up this year,” quipped MacAulay. “Take a picture and send it to Arsene Wenger.”

Global Radio boss promoted on Twitter

It sounds too good to be true. A City Spy reader was surprised to see the personal Twitter account of Global Radio boss Ashley Tabor being “promoted” on the site as a suggested person to follow. City Spy is confident Tabor has no need to pay for a public profile. After all, he has already built up an impressive 16,000 Twitter followers...

Lord Rothschild takes a pay cut

Shock horror. Lord Rothschild is taking a pay cut — voluntarily. The annual report of his RIT Capital Partners reveals that Rothschild, chairman and the only executive director on the board, will see his base salary cut by 22% to £350,000. It states: “This is to reflect his… being less involved in the day-to-day administration of the company.” But before you shed too many tears, it is worth noting that with a £500,000 share bonus his rewards for 2013 totalled £1.1 million, or more than twice the £429,000 he got for nine months’ work in 2012.

PwC’s Kate is on the ball for Palace

There's been some hard tackling in the accountancy world of late as the Big Four battle for work put up for grabs after Brussels insisted that companies who have used the same auditor for more than 20 years make a switch by 2020.

One associate used to getting her boots dirty is Katy Morris, an associate in PwC’s assurance practice who has got through to the fourth round of the FA Women’s Cup.

The Crystal Palace centre-back juggles balls with a full-time career and studying for her Associate Chartered Accountant qualification, issued by ICAEW.

Next up is Portsmouth Ladies in the fourth round on Sunday.

Fresh from the world of audit rotation, let’s hope Morris doesn’t suffer from a squad rotation that will keep her off the pitch.